Senator says that the US must honor Taiwan deals
Staff writer, with Reuters
Washington’s security commitments to Taiwan must be upheld, US senator and Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Roger Wicker said following a meeting on Tuesday with Representative to the US Alexander Yui (俞大?).
Four other senators from US President Donald Trump’s political party called on his administration last week to release more than US$14 billion in stalled national security assistance for Taiwan.
The US is Taiwan’s most important international backer and weapons supplier.
US Senator Roger Wicker, front, speaks at the Presidential Office in Taipei during his visit on Aug. 29 last year.
Photo: CNA
Washington is bound by the 1979 Taiwan Relations Act to provide Taiwan with the means to defend itself.
“As members of Congress, we have a duty to make sure this law is adhered to and that decisions about the defense needs of Taiwan are based on our joint assessment of military necessity,” Wicker said in a statement.
China has repeatedly called for arms sales to Taiwan to end, and in May, Trump said he was holding a package worth US$14 billion in abeyance after a trip to Beijing.
After meeting President Xi Jinping (習近平) in Washington last week, Trump said only that the Chinese leader understood his position on Taiwan.
Wicker said the US should uphold a precedent from the “six assurances” that the US would not consult Beijing on arms sales to Taiwan.
“In response — and in accordance with the Taiwan Relations Act — Congress has authorized and appropriated a surge in resources to provide Taiwan with enhanced training, security assistance and arms sales. These authorities must be used for the purposes that Congress intended,” Wicker said.
Taiwan is in continuous talks with Washington about arms sales and had received reassurances since the summit between Trump and Xi that US policy on Taiwan had not changed, Minister of National Defense Wellington Koo (顧立雄) said earlier on Tuesday.
Wicker said he had also discussed the rise of Chinese aggression against the US’ Indo-Pacific allies with Yui.
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